AIM consumer Kathy Benjamin has been crocheting blankets and giving them to others since she was a teenager. Now 71 and experiencing vision loss, her lifelong hobby has taken on a new meaning.

Benjamin has macular degeneration, and is now considered legally blind. She still lives independently at Villa Serene Apartments in Elmira Heights with the help of services received through the state’s Nursing Home Transition and Diversion (NHTD) Medicaid Waiver Program.

But she has become increasingly reclusive, because her low vision makes venturing out into the community difficult. She can only make out shapes and can’t recognize people’s faces.

To help her deal with the profound impact of her vision loss and adapt to the change, Benjamin receives Community Integration Counseling, one of the services available through the NHTD Waiver, from AIM.

“We work on problem solving, handling situations, gaining acceptance of her vision deficit, and focusing on what she is still able to do,” said AIM’s Terri Colvin, who provides her Community Integration Counseling.

One of the things Benjamin can still do is make beautiful, warm, cozy blankets. Using a magnifying lamp, muscle memory and supplies purchased with the help of her brother, it takes her approximately 10 hours to make each one.

Benjamin has donated her blankets for years to places like the Steuben Center nursing home in Bath, where her daughter worked, and to the Chemung County Department of Aging and Long Term Care.

Recently, AIM has been donating the blankets on Benjamin’s behalf, delivering them to patients at Falck Cancer Center, part of Arnot Ogden Medical Center in Elmira, to keep the patients warm while undergoing treatment.

“I enjoy making them. It makes me feel good to donate them,” Benjamin said.